A Florida condominium or homeowners association must hold an annual meeting of its owners every year, noticed by mail, hand delivery, or electronic transmission to each owner and by conspicuous posting at least 14 days in advance, with an agenda stating the business to be conducted. A condominium that elects directors at the meeting adds the statutory election timeline: a first notice at least 60 days out, candidate notices due 40 days out, and a second notice with the ballot 14 to 34 days out. Quorum, proxy, and participation rules follow from sections 718.112(2) and 720.306, and the records the meeting generates must be kept. The meeting itself takes an hour; planning it correctly takes three months.
The timeline
| When | Condominium (Chapter 718) | Homeowners association (Chapter 720) |
|---|---|---|
| 90+ days before | Board sets the date and location (within 45 miles of the property if the bylaws are silent); confirms bylaws' notice and quorum provisions; adopts electronic voting resolution if it will be used | Same, checking the bylaws' quorum, nomination and proxy provisions, which control HOA elections |
| 60 days before | First notice of election mailed, delivered, or electronically transmitted to all owners | Notice of the election and the nomination procedure as the bylaws provide; eligible members may nominate themselves in advance |
| 40 days before | Candidate notices of intent due to the association | Nomination deadline per the bylaws |
| 35 days before | Candidate information sheets due | — |
| 14–34 days before | Second notice with the ballot, candidate information sheets, outer and inner envelopes, the annual meeting notice, agenda, limited proxy form for any owner votes, and posting; affidavit of compliance signed | Annual meeting notice with agenda and proxy form mailed, delivered, or electronically transmitted and posted at least 14 days before; affidavit of compliance signed |
| Meeting day | Ballots opened and counted by an impartial committee in the presence of owners; 20% of eligible voters must cast ballots; quorum determined for other business | Quorum determined (30% of total voting interests unless bylaws set lower); election by written ballot, secret ballot if bylaws permit, or seated without a vote if uncontested |
| Within days after | Organizational board meeting elects officers; minutes prepared; ballots, sign-in sheets, and proxies retained one year | Same; challenges to the election must be brought within 60 days |
Bylaws may require longer notice than the statute, and where they do, the bylaws control. Associations required to maintain a website must post the notice and agenda there as well.
Notice content
The annual meeting notice states the date, time, and place and includes the agenda. Every matter on which owners will vote must appear on the agenda; owners cannot be asked to vote on an amendment, a reserve waiver, or a material alteration that the notice did not identify. If the meeting will consider waiving or reducing reserves or waiving the statutory financial report, the notice must say so and a limited proxy must be enclosed. For a condominium the notice is signed by an officer and an affidavit of mailing or delivery is placed in the official records. Electronic transmission is permitted only to owners who have consented in writing.
Quorum
A quorum is the percentage of voting interests that must be present, in person or by proxy, for the owners to conduct business other than the condominium election. For condominiums the default is a majority of the voting interests; for homeowners associations it is 30 percent of the total voting interests; in both cases the bylaws may set a lower number but not a higher one. Proxies count toward quorum, which is why associations that struggle to reach it mail a general proxy with the notice and encourage owners to return it even if they will attend.
If quorum is not reached, the meeting may be adjourned to a later date and the proxies already received remain valid for the adjourned meeting, so long as it is held within the 90-day proxy validity period. A condominium election, however, does not require a quorum: it is valid if at least 20 percent of the eligible voters cast ballots. The board can be elected at a meeting that cannot otherwise conduct business.
Proxies and limited proxies
A general proxy appoints another person to attend and vote on the owner's behalf on matters not requiring a limited proxy, and to count toward quorum. A limited proxy directs the proxy holder how to vote on a specific question, and the statute requires limited proxies (or the owner's own ballot) for votes to waive or reduce reserves, to waive the financial reporting requirement, to amend the declaration, articles, or bylaws, and for any other matter on which the statute requires or permits a vote of the owners. Proxies must be in writing, dated, signed, identify the meeting, and are valid only for that meeting and its adjournments within 90 days. A proxy is revocable at any time by the owner. Proxies may not be used to elect condominium directors; in homeowners associations they may be used unless the bylaws prohibit it. Our ballots, proxies, and voting certificates guide covers the forms in detail.
Owner participation
Owners have the right to attend the annual meeting and to speak on every agenda item, subject to reasonable written rules on frequency, duration, and manner. They may record the meeting. The chair, usually the president, runs the meeting under the bylaws' parliamentary procedure, if any, and otherwise under the reasonable rules the board has adopted. A short owner-comment period on each item before the vote, a stated time limit, and a requirement that speakers identify themselves are enforceable; refusing to recognize owners, or cutting off comment on a controversial item, produces the complaints that reach the Division.
Electronic voting and remote attendance
Both chapters permit electronic voting through a system that authenticates the voter, separates the voter's identity from the vote, and produces a record. The board must adopt a resolution authorizing electronic voting at a noticed meeting, give owners notice, and obtain each participating owner's written consent; owners who do not consent vote by paper. Since 2025, a condominium board must meet within 21 days to consider adopting electronic voting when petitioned by 25 percent of the voting interests, and condominium unit owner meetings may be conducted by video conference under statutory conditions that include a physical location, a quorum of the board present in person, and a recording kept as an official record. Chapter 720 contains no parallel video-conference provision for homeowners association membership meetings. Electronic voting solves the 20 percent problem in communities with absentee owners, and it produces the audit trail that election challenges demand.
After the meeting
The board holds an organizational meeting, usually immediately after the annual meeting, to elect officers. Minutes of the annual meeting are prepared, approved at the next meeting of the owners or as the bylaws provide, and kept permanently. Ballots, sign-in sheets, voting proxies, and other papers relating to voting are official records and must be kept for at least one year from the election, or longer if a challenge is pending. Newly elected directors have 90 days to complete the required education and file their certificates.
Common defects
The defects that void annual meeting actions are almost always procedural: notice mailed 13 days before the meeting; an agenda that omitted the vote actually taken; a general proxy counted on a reserve waiver; ballots opened by the manager alone before the meeting; a candidate excluded for a delinquency the association could not document; a quorum counted with proxies more than 90 days old. Each is avoidable with a calendar and a checklist, and each is expensive after the fact.
Frequently Asked Questions About Annual Meetings
What happens if we cannot reach quorum?
Business other than a condominium election cannot be conducted. The meeting may be adjourned to a later date within the 90-day proxy period, and the proxies already received carry over. Associations with chronic quorum problems should mail general proxies with the notice, adopt electronic voting, and consider amending the bylaws to lower the quorum percentage.
Do we need a quorum to hold the election?
Not in a condominium: the election is valid if at least 20 percent of the eligible voters cast ballots, whether or not a quorum is present for other business. In a homeowners association the bylaws control, and most require a quorum for the annual meeting at which the election occurs.
Can owners vote by proxy in the election?
Not in a condominium (except timeshare condominiums); directors are elected by ballot or electronic vote only. In a homeowners association proxies may be used in elections unless the bylaws prohibit them.
How long is a proxy good for?
A proxy is valid only for the meeting for which it was given and any lawful adjournment of that meeting, and in no event longer than 90 days after the date of the original meeting. It may be revoked by the owner at any time.
Who counts the ballots?
In a condominium, an impartial committee of owners appointed by the board, none of whom are candidates, directors, officers, or their relatives, counts the ballots in the presence of any owners who wish to observe, on the day of the meeting. Homeowners associations follow their bylaws, and many adopt the same practice.
What records must we keep from the meeting?
The notice, the affidavit of compliance, the agenda, the sign-in sheet, all proxies, all ballots and envelopes, the tally sheets, and the minutes. Ballots and voting materials must be kept for at least one year; minutes are kept permanently.
Contact Hamilton Mikes
Hamilton Mikes prepares annual meeting and election packages, attends contested meetings, and defends election challenges for associations throughout Southwest Florida. Call 239-594-7227 or visit our Corporate Governance page.
Statutes and authorities referenced
- § 718.112(2)(b), Fla. Stat. (unit owner meetings: quorum, proxies, limited proxies, 90-day proxy validity)
- § 718.112(2)(d), Fla. Stat. (annual meeting; 14-day notice; election procedure and 60/40/14-day notices; 20% ballot threshold)
- § 718.128, Fla. Stat. (electronic voting)
- § 718.111(12)(a) and (g), Fla. Stat. (retention of ballots, proxies and sign-in sheets; website posting of meeting notices)
- § 720.306(1), (2), (3), (5), (6), (8), (9), Fla. Stat. (HOA quorum, annual and special meetings, 14-day notice, right to speak, proxies, elections)
- § 720.317, Fla. Stat. (HOA electronic voting)
- § 719.106(1)(b) and (d), Fla. Stat. (cooperative owner meetings and elections)